System for the Delivery and Dynamic Presentation of Large Media Assets over Bandwidth Constrained Networks

ABSTRACT

Media content, based on a predetermined set of constraints, from a content provider is delivered to a local cache of a user device before viewing the media. A client asset manager process resides in the user device, an asset list at the content provider site, and the media assets are located at a remote site.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The contents of this application are related to U.S. ProvisionalApplication Nos. 60/405,157 (filed Aug. 21, 2002) and 60/403,995 (filedAug. 17, 2002), the contents of which are incorporated herein byreference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to delivering and presenting high quality,media based content, to users or processes over networks, with assuredQuality of Service (QOS) even if Insufficient network bandwidth isavailable.

2. Description of the Background Art

The inventors have recognized that even with advances in networktechnologies, delivering rich, high quality experiences will remain achallenge. In particular, delivering large media assets—whether they beaudio, video, flash, games, data or other digital media formats—oftenrequires more network bandwidth/throughput than is available. Forinstance, in the case of audio and video, a hi bit rate asset can onlybe delivered in real time if a user's effective bandwidth is at leastequal to the asset's bit rate, otherwise the result is a sub-optimaluser experience complete with stutters, stops, and content buffering.

On the other hand, a large game executable may not have the same realtime constraints (or required quality of service) as a video, howeverdownloading the asset requires a significant amount of time and overheadfor the user, even on the fastest networks. While a number of “downloadmanagers” on the market will take care of this for the user, a contentprovider may wish to intelligently and adaptively manage the download ofassets to the user device (e.g., a computer, a set-top box with memoryand/or processor, a device) in an elegant and transparent manner,without needing the attention of the user.

Given this, there is a need to manage and deliver large, high qualitymedia assets to users using their limited bandwidth in a time shiftedmanner. That is, there is a need to be able to unobtrusively delivercontent to users via available bandwidth and idle cycles, so that whenthe high quality content is needed, it is readily available on demandand an uncompromised user experience is rendered. This in turn providesthe Illusion that the user has more effective bandwidth than is actuallyavailable. To this end there is also a need for this technology tointegrate seamlessly into delivery and presentation platforms (includingbut not limited to web browsers, flash and other platforms) and contentpublishing systems. The present invention achieves this and otherfunctionalities and also overcomes the limitations of the prior art.

For ease of understanding, the following definitions will applythroughout this application; however, no definition should be regardedas being superceding any art-accepted understanding of the listed terms.

GLOSSARY

1. Throughput—The amount of data transferred from one place to anotherin a specified amount of time. Typically, throughputs are measured inkbps, Mbps and Gbps.

2. Quality of Service, QOS—The term that specifies a guaranteedthroughput level.

3. Client Process—The process on the client that receives cache/displaymanagement directives or hints from a server process and then executesdirectives to bring the cache current state in line with desired stateand may trigger one or more notifications to users or other process's asit does so.

4. Cache—A store of assets with “known” availability or QOS. A cache inthis context is an asset storage mechanism where the QOS meets thecontent requirements and is in general higher than the medium used toacquire the assets. State changes within the cache may result innotifications.

5. Server Process—Provides the client with the information required forthe client to manage the state of the cache. In its most simpleimplementation it is similar to a quasi dynamic server generated playlist. More elaborate implementations (all of ours) also provide controldirectives for the client to inform other process's of progress againstspecific sets of assets.

6. Expiration date—expiration date of asset, and indicates when theasset should be removed from the local cache.

7. Callback URL—a URL that is retrieved once the asset item has beendownloaded.

8. Client-side Token—a token or cookie to set when the item has beendownloaded. This allows a client or server application to determine thepresence of an asset on the local system.

9. Embargo Date—This indicates the latest date the asset will be used.

10. Delete—This indicates that the asset is to be marked for explicitdeletion (to override the expiration date). This allows for retractionof an asset.

11. Refresh rate—determines how often a client checks an asset list forchanges.

12. Resource path—the network location of any number of resourcesassociated with the asset list.

13. Media Assets—at least one of a text, audio, video, or binaryfile/data.

14. Item—a single media file.

15. Link—URL for the media file.

16. hitCountUrl—URL to ping after the file has successfully downloaded.A parameter, duration, will be appended to the end of the URLindicating, in seconds, how long the download took.

17. helpUr—URL for the client process help that is to be displayed whenthe user selects help menu item.

18. trackWithCookie—optional element that, if present, indicates thisasset will be added to the list of assets in the cookie specified bycookieName.

19. cookieName—name of the cookie that lists all downloaded assets thathave the trackWithCookie element present. This cookie is essential forad serving so the ad server knows which ads have been downloaded. Theformat of the cookie will consist of the name only of the files (noextension or path) separated by commas.

20. cookieDomain—domain on which to set the downloaded assets cookie.Multiple domains can be specified if separated by semi-colons or commas.

21. /regserver—registers the ActiveX controls with the system and addsthe client process to the startup folder

22. /shutdown—stops another running instance of the client process, ifpresent.

23. /unregserver—unregisters the ActiveX controls and removes theshortcut from the startup folder. Also stops the running instance ofclientprocess.exe and removes COM object registry entries.

24. CDN—Content Distribution Network. A federated group of contentservers owned and operated by a 3^(rd) party. In general practice a CONservice provide additional capacity using a highly decentralizedcollection of servers.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides for a system and method by which mediacontent is delivered from a content provider to a local cache of a userdevice, based on a predetermined set of constraints, prior to viewingthe media. An asset list comprises information related to the mediaassets to be downloaded to the client device, and is transmitted fromthe content provider to the user device. The asset list, for examplecontains URL's or information related to the location of the mediaassets.

A client asset manager process resides in the user device and isresponsible for downloading assets from the content provider. The assetmanager uses the asset list to request media assets which are located ata remote site. The client process manages delivery of assets to the userdevice, periodically, when specific constraints are met. For example,assets are delivered to the user when there is optimal network bandwidthavailability, user device memory, assured quality of service, etc.

The present invention thereby provides a continuous, uninterrupted, andsubstantially seamless display (visual and auditory) of media content byefficient delivery of the media assets to the users. By integratingthese assets with a viewing means (e.g., a web-browser), the user isprovided an uninterrupted and continuous stream of media content thatdoes not require realtime buffering.

The present invention furthermore provides improved methods fordelivering one or mot large media assets, for instance, audio content,video content, movies, games etc., intelligently and adaptively, over anetwork to a local asset store. As such, the local asset store isavailable to a client, or end-user, device and where a relatively highquality of service is to be assured. The invention also includes anadaptive method of combining these assets into an essentially seamlesspresentation based on local availability of the assets.

The present invention comprises a method for delivering an asset over anetwork. The method comprises supplying an asset list over the networkto a user device. The method further comprises a client which operateson a user device. The client refers to the asset list in downloading anddelivering the asset to the user device. The client further managesdownloading the assets based on when at least one predeterminedconstraint is satisfied.

A content provider can place a digital asset on a user's device apriori, so that it is immediately available for use, without a networkdownload, when the user needs it. This can happen when explicitlyrequested by a user or process, or be initiated by a content providerbased on a subscription service.

The invention is further described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a general overview of the client process, according to oneembodiment of the present invention, interacting with a content providersite and a remote media server;

FIG. 2 is another view of the client process showing scripts used forintegrating streaming end cached media into web browsers;

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary program code for the file;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary depiction of C++ classes in the client processapplication;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary depiction of a timing feature used fordownloading media assets by the client;

FIG. 6 is an error chart which affects the amount of time to wait for amedia asset download;

FIG. 7 depicts one aspect of the hierarchical nature of the attributesin relation to asset information in an asset list; and

FIG. 8 depicts another aspect of the hierarchical nature of theattributes in relation to asset information in an asset list.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A. General Description

A continuous, uninterrupted, and substantially seamless display (visualand auditory) of media content, by efficient delivery of the mediaassets is provided to users. Specifically, assets are delivered to auser device, periodically, when specific constraints are met (e.g.,network bandwidth availability, user device memory, assured QOS, etc.)By integrating these assets with a viewing means (e.g., a web-browser),the user is provided an uninterrupted and continuous stream of mediacontent that does not require real-time buffering.

One or more large media assets, for instance, audio content, videocontent, movies, games etc., are delivered intelligently and adaptively,over a network to a local asset store. As such, the local asset store isavailable to a dent, or end-user, device and where a relatively high QOSis to be assured. There is also an adaptive method of combining theseassets into an essentially seamless presentation based on localavailability of the assets.

One example of a local asset store, where the QOS is assured, could be acache or a data storage facility offered by Local Area Network (LAN) towhich the user device is connected. By local availability it is meantthat an asset is available on a local to end user or process storagesystem (or a local store, with a high speed network in between theclient device and the local store).

In one embodiment a process or application runs on a user's device,herein referred to as the client. The client is responsible for managinga cache of content on the user's local store. Applications, web pagesand multimedia presentations can then rely on this cache to incorporatelarge media assets that are already resident. Applications, web pagesand multimedia presentations can query the cache about its content anddynamically tailor user experiences around the content that isavailable. These applications may be client or server side applications.

The client may be a service that is downloaded from the Internet andinstalled in the user's device. The client may alternatively be providedas a core component of a computer operating system, or come bundled withother software applications.

The client manages a cache of media assets for the end user. In oneimplementation, the assets included in the cache are dictated by anasset list provided by a content provider. In this implementation, theclient retrieves the asset list at specific and tunable time intervalsfrom a network location. Based on the information in the asset lists,the client manages the download of assets from a remote location whenpredetermined constraints are satisfied.

A client is allowed to be associated with more then one asset list, sothat many service providers or multiple business units of one serviceprovider can separately maintain their own asset lists and make use ofthe same client to manage the downloads. Also, the client may be madeaware of the location of an asset list when the client is installed orupdated. The install is initiated from a web page. If the client is notyet installed in the client device, software in the web page detectsthis and prompts the user to download and install the client. It is alsopossible to add an asset list to the client through scripting (combinedwith ActiveX controls) in a web page.

The client manages the download of assets based on predeterminedconstraints. As has been mentioned thus far, predetermined constraintsinclude, for example, network bandwidth availability, user devicememory, time of day, and assured quality of service. For instance, inone implementation of the client, downloads only occur when the userdevice is idle. In another implementation, the client process downloadsonly when network activity is below a certain level. In anotherinstance, the client process measures the CPU and memory usage on theuser device, and the predetermined constraint is met when usage is belowcertain performance levels. In yet another instance the client processmanages the downloading of assets based on the time of day, andstatically when network usage is lowest. The client process can ofcourse, additionally utilize any combination of constraints to managethe download of assets.

The download capability can be switched on and off by the user. The usercan also specify that downloads only happen when the device is oncertain networks (for example on a LAN versus a dialup connection). Forexample, a user may subscribe to a content service whereby assets aredownloaded (by the client) in the late evening hours for morningviewing.

Furthermore, intelligent and adaptive management of assets is possiblewithout the need for an explicit “download manager” under control by auser. By intelligently, it is meant that the assets are delivered to theclient when some predetermined constraints are satisfied (e.g.,bandwidth of the network, time of day, QOS, etc.). By adaptively, it ismeant that the asset lists, at the content provider site or the userdevice site, are automatically updated based on user viewingpreferences.

Asset lists are used as a means for content producers to publish andmanage content on client's local store. Thus, this functionality allowscontent producers to publish media assets that will at some point laterbe integrated into the presentation of an Application, web page orflash-based presentation. In one instance the producers enterinformation about an asset including its location, dates of presentationand text & related information that may be associated with the assetinto a backend publishing system. This information is then published andincorporated into the relevant asset lists. The publishing system mayalso (immediately or at a certain date and time in the future) publish aweb page or presentation that incorporates the asset.

One method for delivering asset over a network includes: (i) supplyingan asset list by a content provider over the network to a client,wherein the client process operates on a user device; and (ii)delivering the asset, corresponding to the asset list, over the networkto the user device when predetermined constrains are satisfied. As anexample, the asset could be at least one of a binary data, an audiocontent, a video content, a textual content, or a multimedia filed. Thepredetermined constraints could include the time of day, the user devicestatus (i.e., whether the device is being used or is idle), bandwidthusage (i.e., whether the bandwidth usage is below a predeterminedoperating level, the user device CPU usage, the user device memory usage(i.e., whether the memory usage is below predetermined operatinglevels). In addition, the asset could be stored in the local cache ofthe user device. Furthermore, the client may integrate the stored assetwith the real time content, from the content provider, in a seamlessfashion to provide an uninterrupted and seamless presentation of contentto the user. Moreover, the asset list can be updated frequently, therebyproviding the client process (or cache) with the ability to receive awide variety of content periodically based on the predeterminedconstraints.

The system provides to a user an uninterrupted stream of contentcomprising: (i) an asset list made available by a content provider overthe internet to a client process, wherein the client process operates ona device of the user; (ii) an asset, made available from a remotelocation, over the network to the user device when predeterminedconstraints are satisfied, wherein Information of the remote location isobtained from the asset list; and (iii) an Integrator tool forintegrating the delivered asset with a content stream being received bythe user device from the remote location over the internet. The user ispresented with an uninterrupted and continuous stream of content.

The producer can enter alternative low-bandwidth media assets andcorresponding textual information, which can then be combined in thebackend with the information on the rich media assets to produce twodifferent versions of the page (one for users that for whatever reasonhave not been able to download the large assets and one for the richmedia assets). Users may not be able to download the rich media assetsfor a number of reasons, such as (1) incompatible system (2) theirsystems haven't been online to receive the downloads (3) they haven'tpaid for a premium service (4) they have insufficient disk space (5)they have been using the computer and didn't want it's resources usedfor downloading. As such, the ability to deliver an alternativeexperience in either case is important.

Content along with advertising can be delivered, for instance, in asequenced fashion, only allowing the content to be played when acorresponding advertisement also exists in the local cache. In oneembodiment this is achieved by using (client or server-side) scriptingto determine if both media assets exist on the user's device (thecontent piece and the advertisement). In another embodiment, thisfunctionality is achieved by using the asset list bundles, which sets atoken when both assets are on the local device.

The user can actively specify the media that is downloaded and cached onthe local device. In one implementation, this is achieved by aserver-side database that manages an asset list for each user. Forinstance, in the middle of the week, a user might specify they'd like towatch a-feature length DVD quality movie that weekend. This would resultin an asset being added to their asset list and result in the clientdownloading the asset over time. The user may be charged to add theasset to this list, or (see below) digital rights management may be usedto control the asset. In another instance, this method is combined witha “push” from the content provider as follows: to watch a late nightnews broadcast every morning a user subscribes to a service. As aresult, the service inserts a new asset into the user's asset list eachevening to identify the new show to be downloaded.

Furthermore, the system may work with ISP and cable provider co-locationdelivery facilities. In one implementation, when a producer publishes anasset it is then moved to an ISP and cable provider collocation deliveryfacility or system (which is close to the user in network geography).The client retrieves that asset and places it in local cache byretrieving it ISP and cable provider collection delivery facility orsystem rather than the service providers source media servers.

In addition, a content provider can optimize the user experience basedon the assets at hand. For instance, a news related web site may providea photo of a news story if no rich media asset is available, however ifa video asset is stored locally, the web page may substitute the videoin place of the image on the web page. This may include thecorresponding textual “copy” of the video, as the video and image maynot be of the same story and thus would require different supportingtext and captions. In one embodiment this is accomplished by having theserver-side application detect the presence of the asset via it'scorresponding asset token (see asset lists attributes above). Dependingon whether or not the token is present a different page is created forthe end user. In another embodiment this is done on the client side viascripting in the web browser. That is, by using scripting in the webpage a different page is created via dynamic HTML based on the existenceof the media assets token.

One advantage provided by the invention is that it allows a contentprovider to optimize its network bandwidth usage. Specifically, byincreasing delivery of content when usage falls below peak, the valleysof bandwidth use are filled such that bandwidth use is optimized.

In another aspect, digital rights management (DRM) schemes can beapplied to the data flows. For instance, the DRM protected asset couldbe published through the invention. Thus, when the user “plays” theasset, they are prompted to acquire the appropriate license as a“right-to-use” the content.

In another aspect, GAME assets can be distributed in the form of real orvirtual ISO images that may be used on the client.

B. Set-Top Box Example

The client may download and manage media assets related to media contentfrom different sources such as a TV set-top box, wherein the assets aredelivered on a sideband of a carrier signal or through a data network,such as a cable or satellite network or the Internet or an intranet. Forexample, in one embodiment, viewers at home have access to a library ofmovies, or any other audio/video content available for viewing atanytime. Specifically, the method involves transmitting media assets,such as movies, to a set-top box in one's home and allowing movies toaccumulate.

A hard disk drive in the set-top box is used to store movies. The movesare transmitted using a datacasting technology which transmits largeamounts of date over standard broadcast television signals. Informationrelated to the datacasting technology is found in Application numberWO9955087 to Hartson et al. on filed on Apr. 16, 1999 and published Oct.28, 1999, which is hereby incorporated by reference. For example, in a24-hour period, this datacasting technology can distribute 20high-quality feature-length movies. The set top box is easily connectedto the user's television just as any other external device such as a VCRor DVD player. The set-top box is also connected to a phone line forbilling purposes.

In an exemplary embodiment, the set top box is located in a person'shome, connected to their television using standard video cables. The settop box has an antenna which receives data via the broadcast televisionsignal. The set top box has, preferably, at least an 80 Gigabyte harddrive for storing a plurality of movies. The set-top box has a modemwhich the set-lop uses to periodically contact the service provider.Information passed between the service provider and the set-topincludes: the users “Viewing/Rental History” which is used for billingpurposes, set-top performance logs which are used to monitor theperformance of the system and “Movie Keys” which are used decrypt themovies.

The set-top box has a processor which is capable of receiving the datastream from the broadcast signal, reassembling data, and writing data tothe hard drive. The processor must also be capable of simultaneouslyplaying a movie and reacting to infrared signals from the remote controlas well as modem activity. The hard drive is mated with the set-top boxfor security purposes, rendering it useless if removed and used anywhereelse. The set-top box preferably does not have a fan as it is designedto be very quiet. The set top box also comprises a secure processor aspart of its security system. The secure processor is the activecomponent of a smart card which is physically attached to the PCB withepoxy to make it physically hard to tamper with.

Movies are not “streamed” to the set-top box in real-time, insteadcontent files are “packetized” and these “packets” are continuouslytransmitted to the set-top box where they are incrementally reassembled.The user is not aware of what data is being sent to their set-top box.The movies are pushed down by the provider to reside passively in thebox for a finite time period. Transmission of the data is controlled bythe content or service provider. To ensure that movies are received intheir entirety, the same movie may be broadcast to the set-top boxseveral times. Any packets of data that were not received in the firstattempt of transmission will be received with subsequent broadcasts. Inthe perspective of the present invention, a client process resides onthe set-top box and the media assets (movie content) are retrieved fromthe remote site when predetermined constraints (e.g., network bandwidth,QOS) are satisfied.

Movies transmitted to the set-top box may also have associatedinformation that defines certain characteristics of the movie. Forexample, a movie may have an associated start and end date or time whichlimits the time period in which a movie can be viewed. For example, amovie may arrive and be stored in the set-top box, however it may have astart date associated with it which does not allow it to be viewed untilthat date. This allows for any discrepancies in transmission times formovies that may vary from one location to another, and also allows formovies to be “pre-loaded” and Immediately available on the officialrelease date. Similarly, the asset list may have an end date associatedwith a movie, after which date the movie can no longer be viewed, and isautomatically deleted from the set-top box.

Movies stored on the set top box are encrypted. Upon selection of amovie to view and satisfaction of business rules (ie: the user hassufficient credit), the set top box allows for the movie to be decryptedand played. The set-top box does not need to connect to the serviceprovider prior to allowing a movie to be viewed, since the keys fordecrypting the movies are typically pre-fetched and resident on theset-top along with the current account status. Obviously, the encryptedmovies cannot be viewed without decrypting them. All decryption islogged and this log is used to determine a user's bill. The logicsurrounding decryption and user account status is handled by the secureprocessor. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a fee ischarged to the user upon selection of the movie for viewing, asubsequent “rental confirmation” dialog end prior to viewing of themovie.

In another embodiment, the user is billed for viewing a movie once asubstantial portion of the movie has been viewed. Once a movie has beenselected, it can be viewed again without charge for a limited period oftime (e.g. 24 hours), or for a limited number of viewings. In anotherembodiment, instead of paying for each movie, the user is charged amonthly fee. The amount of the monthly fee will depend on variousoptions such as the number of movies that can be viewed, the period oftime that a selected movie is available for viewing, and the number ofpermitted viewings of each selected movie. A telephone line is used toeffect transfer from the user of the information that a key is beingsought by the user and thus a charge should be made. Thus, even thoughthe user has a library of movies stored on the user's set-top box, thereis no charge unless a movie is actually viewed.

In other embodiments, data can be transmitted to the set-top box bycable, satellite, internet, etc. Although wireless broadcast is apreferred embodiment, the present invention should not be limited towireless transmission.

C. Description in Relation To Drawings

FIG. 1 shows a general overview of the system 10 used for delivering andpresenting a media stream, without interruptions, on a user device.Specifically, the user device 20 includes an at least one client process24 (e.g., a client asset manager process) that interacts with the clientasset list 42 at a site of the content provider, depicted as 40. Alsopresent, in the user device 20, is a local cache 28 for storinginformation. The cache 26 could be at least one of arandom-access-memory (RAM), a read-only-memory (ROM), or a hard drive.In addition, there could be present a remote site 60 that containsassets 62 such as program content (e.g., a sporting event, cooking show,etc.). As an alternative, assets 62 could be located at the contentprovider site 40, of at a cable/internet-service provider (not shown).The asset is made available at the cable/ISP provider, before the clientstarts retrieving it. Furthermore, the client may retrieve the assetssimultaneously from a plurality of physically separate locations (e.g.,from a cable/ISP provider, content provider, etc.)

The client process 24 manages a cache of media assets 26 for the enduser. In one implementation, the assets 62 included in this cache 26 aredictated by an asset list 42 provided by a content provider 40 via datapath 80. In this implementation, the client asset manager process 24retrieves the asset list 42 at specific (and tunable) time intervalsfrom a network location (such as the content providers site 40) via datapath 80. Specifically, the client process 24 places a request, via thecontrol signal pathway 84, to the content provider 40 to deliver anupdated asset list 42 via the data path 80.

Likewise, in another implementation, the asset list 42 could be sent tothe end user client 24 by a server (not shown) of the content provider aperiodic manner. The asset list 42 is a data file that contains, atminimum, the list of content assets. Each element in the asset list 42typically identifies a network location and protocol needed to obtainthe asset. For example in one implementation this network location is aUniversal Resource Locator (URL) and the protocol is HTTP. An asset list42 may also contain other attributes (as explained in the summarysection and defined in the Glossary section) associated with each asset,such as:

(i) Expiration date, (ii) Delete;

(ii) Callback URL—In one embodiment, this callback URL is used toinitiate actions upon an asset's download, such as a trackingapplication (to allow tracking of which assets are downloaded and howoften) and an application to notify the user via email or instantmessage that a particular asset Is ready for viewing;

(iii) Client-side Token—In one embodiment this is used to adapt thepresentation based on the availability of assets;

(iv) Throughput—In one embodiment this number is a percentage ofavailable client throughput, and is less than 100%, the client can showthe download by attempting to get chunks of the data only every so oftenrather than all at once. In another embodiment, this number is adownload data rate in bytes per second;

Embargo Date—Any on ent may be subject to a limited window ofavailability. Once the embargo data has been reached the content isremoved by the client so that it is longer available.

In one aspect, these assets can be combined into bundles of content. Theabove attributes can also be assigned to a bundle. For instance, thisallows a client side token to be created once a set of media assets hasbeen delivered to the user's device.

Certain attributes can be associated with the entire asset list 42, suchattributes being:

(a) Refresh rate: in one implementation this could be controlled at theserver side (e.g., at the content provider site 40), which would pushthe asset lit 42 to a client manager 24 via data path 80.

(b) Resource Path, (C) Media Assets.

FIG. 7 depicts one aspect of the hierarchical nature of the attributesin relation to asset information in the asset list. As shown, the assetlist that Is provided to a client, by the content provider/ISP, hasattributes for all asset Information. As an example, Attribute(1,2) mayrefer to the expiration date of Asset 1. The attributes, in thisdepiction, are local to each asset.

In an alternative aspect, the attributes may be global to the asset listas shown in FIG. 8. In this situation, the client could manage thedownload of assets, in the asset list, based on the global attributes asapplicable to all assets.

The client 24 is also capable of managing many parameters of its assetdownload behavior from a remote site 60. For example, in oneimplementation, the client asset manager 24 initiates a request to theremote site 60, via signal 86, to transfer media assets 62 to the localcache 26 via data path 90. The client process 24 can send these requestsfor data transfer (downloads) to the remote site 60 based on whether aset of predetermined constraints are satisfied. For example, downloadscould occur when the user device 20 is idle, when the network bandwidthis below a certain level, when the CPU and/or memory usage in the usedevice 20 are below certain performance levels.

The download capability can be switched on and off by the user. The usercan also specify that downloads only happen when the device is oncertain networks (for example on a LAN versus a dialup connection).

The media assets 62 may be throttled or pushed by the remote site 60,depending on the network conditions (e.g., traffic, available bandwidth,time of day, etc.), without an initiating request from the clientprocess 24.

The asset lists 42 are used as a means for content producers to publishand manage content on client's local store/cache 26. For instance, thisfunctionality allows content producers to publish media assets 62 thatwill at some point be seamlessly integrated into the presentation of aweb page or flash-based presentation (not shown).

Accordingly, the producers may enter information about an assetincluding its location, dates of presentation and text & relatedInformation that may be associated with the asset into a backendpublishing system. This information is then published and incorporatedinto the relevant asset lists. The publishing system may also(immediately or at a certain date and time in the future) publish a webpage or presentation that incorporates the asset. The producer entersalternative low-bandwidth media assets and corresponding textualinformation, which can then be combined with the information on the richmedia assets to produce two different versions of the page (one forusers that for whatever reason have not been able to download the largeassets and one for the rich media assets).

The client asset manager process 24 an application that can run on theuser device 20 to provide downloading and caching. Users would be ableto opt-in, possibly through the content provider website, for obtainingthe client manager/process. As an exemplary embodiment, the clientmanager could be installed to startup automatically and be running inthe background.

FIG. 2 displays another overview of the flow of information for thesystem 100 where the client asset manager process 102 is running on auser device. In an exemplary depiction, a client asset list 110 (e.g.,an XML file) is periodically downloaded from a content provider 120, andassets 130 listed in that file are downloaded from the remotesite/content provider 140 and cached accordingly. The user may navigateto a web page that can display a asset(s), by including a script 150that communicates with the client manager process it Since the clientmanager process 102 could also be an ActiveX Server, only a proxy objectcould be running on the web page 180, and the actual control could bepart of the client manager process 102. In an alternative aspect, theclient process 160 could be embedded in the web page 180 or part of theclient manager process 102.

C(i). Design Perspectives

The inputs may be: (i) configuration file such as an XML file thatallows remote control over the behavior of client manager process 102;(ii) remote media files to be cached on the client. The outputs could belocal paths to media files.

Any web page can display an asset that is cached by the client 102.Using the client's ActiveX interface, a page could contain JavaScriptcode 150 to see if the client process 102 is installed, and ask theclient for information regarding the local path for a media file. If apath is returned, the script could then pass this path information toany web based media player that accepts parameters.

The configuration server 120 could be any web server that hosts theclient configuration file 110. The media server 140 may be any webserver that hosts the media files or assets 130.

C(ii). Execution Flow

The client process 102 may be packaged in a .cab file and signed with adigital certificate to identify the creator of the program (e.g., theWalt Disney Internet Group). A separate .cab file, xyzvldeo.cab, may becreated for different content providers. For example, the filename couldbe espnvideo.cab for ESPN and it may be signed with the ESPN digitalcertificate. Internet Explorer uses the Internet Component Downloadfeature to download and track the application. An .INF file could beincluded in the .cab to instruct the component down-loader as to how toinstall the client process 102.

The .cab file is placed on a web server and when the browser loads a webpage with an OBJECT tag containing the class id of the appropriateActiveX control, it will download the .cab file using the URL specifiedby the CODEBASE attribute. The digital certificate is displayed tonotify the user that our control has been downloaded and prompts forpermission to execute. Once the user accepts, this window will not bedisplayed again unless an updated version is downloaded.

The module, clientprocess.exe. is added to the Downloaded Program Filesfolder and the client may create a shortcut for itself in the Startupfolder. The name of the shortcut is dependent upon who builds the file(e.g., Disney, ESPN, etc.). The client process 102 may also create acookie on the go.com domain called ClientProcess which is set to true ifthe client process is installed. This cookie may be regularly checked toprevent it from being accidentally deleted by a user.

The program is initially executed by the operating system and from thatpoint it will run whenever the user device is booted up.

The digital certificate, mentioned earlier, may be necessary since mostusers have their browser security settings high enough to disallow theinstallation of untrustworthy applications from the Internet. Thepresence of the certificate allows the browser to identify the origin ofthe software and ask the user whether that company or person should betrusted.

The CODEBASE attribute of the OBJECT tag supports the optional additionof the desired version of the software to be installed. The version isappended to the URL of the location of the cab, with a ‘#’ used as theseparator. If, for example, the current version of client process in thefield is 1,0,0,1 and a new version 1,0,0,2 has been put on the webserver, appending ‘#1,0,0,2’ at the end of the CODEBASE URL will directthe component downloader to download and install the new version.

The .INF file contains a hook to first run clientprocess.exe with the/shutdown parameter to first close clientprocess.exe so the update willnot require a reboot.

The component installer may add information to the registry using apredefined key.

The menu for the client process system tray icon will contain anUninstall option. When clicked, the client process will uninstall itselfby running another instance of clientprocess.exe passing the/unregserver parameter. The uninstall process will do the following, (i)unregister the controls, (ii) cleanup the registry entries added by theclient process, (iii) remove client process item from the Startup folder

When the operating system starts and Explorer runs the items in theStartup Folder, the client process 102 will start. It may not terminateunless the user closes it from the system tray loon or the operatingsystem shuts down.

The client process 102 may not visible to the user except for a systemtray icon containing a few menu items. If, for example, ESPN'sBottomLine application is running, the ESPN version of the clientprocess will not display its tray icon because BottomLine will providethe client process 102 some options in its menu. This is useful as itcuts down on the number of icons one could place in the tray on a singleclient. Programs such as BottomLine and the client process 102 may needto be in periodic communication with each other to ensure one is awareif the other shuts down and that the client process is aware if one ofits menu items is selected. The icon will either be an ESPN icon oranother icon depending upon the build.

The following items will be in the client process tray icon menu: (i)Help—displays help for the client process 102; (ii) the XML group filecan have an optional helpUrl item. When the user selects Help, a browserwill be opened with this URL, (iii) About—shows programcopyright/information dialog, (iv) Exit—stops the program (does notremove it from startup folder), (v) Uninstall—uninstalls the program andremoves COM registry entries.

At least one instance of the client process 102 may run at a time. Theonly exception to this is if clientprocess.exe is run with the/unregserver or /shutdown parameter, that instance will terminate analready running instance, if it exists. Clientprocess.exe may achievethis single instance functionality by creating a shared mutex that ischecked by subsequent instances of the program. Thus in some situations,if an existing instance is found, the second one will terminateimmediately.

The threading model for the client process could be the apartment model.This means the client process ActiveX controls are designed such thatthey-expect to only be accessed from a single thread. However, theclient process as a whole is multithreaded and will start a thread toperform a single asset download, terminate that thread and start anotherthread when the next download occurs. Only one download may occur at atime.

During regular operating mode, the client process will run without anyparameters. However, the following command line parameters could besupported: (i) /regserver; (ii) /shutdown—Stops another running instanceof clientprocess.exe, if present; and (iii) /unregserver.

The client process is configured using XML Group files that aredownloaded from the configuration server. The URL of the group file isobtained through the xml PARAM tag within the OBJECT tag for theClientProcessGroup ActiveX control on a web page. Every time aClientProcessGroup control is initialized with an xml parameter, theclient process checks to see if that group has already been added. Ifnot, it is added to the registry and the file is downloaded and parsed.The registry entries for group files are not removed until the clientprocess is uninstalled.

The Group file is downloaded regularly according to its configurablerefresh rate. If the server supports the If-Modified-Since header, theclient process may not download the file if it has not been modifiedsince the last download.

The XML in the group file uses the RSS format with some additionalclient process specific elements. RSS is an open format for syndicationthat is used for many of Disney's feeds. The idea is to try to use asmuch of the standard as possible so that the group files couldpotentially be used by other systems.

FIG. 3 shows an exemplary DTD for the group file.

Upon startup, the client process registers itself with the system as aCOM Local Server for the following ActiveX controls. OnlyClientProcessGroup is marked safe for initialization and onlyClientProcessLocator is marked safe for scripting. This is to avoid useof the controls for malicious purposes. The initial prototype ofClientProcess was designed to have an ActiveX interface for each majorcomponent to allow a web page to display status. These interfaces arealso very useful for troubleshooting during the development/testingphases.

ClientProcessSvc:

This is the main class of the application and is placed on theinstallation web page with an OBJECT tag to force the download andinstall of the application. There is a singleton instance ofCClientProcessSvc created for the process which tracks al asset andgroup objects created. The IClientProcessSvc interface provides methodsfor reporting the status of the program.

ClientProcessGroup:

The ClientProcessGroup ActiveX control is used by JavaScript to assign aconfiguration file to the client process. Through the IPropertyBaginterface, ClientProcessGroup accepts an OBJECT tag parameter, calledeither xml or source, which is set to the URL of the XML file. A singleXML configuration (or group) file is represented by oneClientProcessGroup object. The IClientProcessGroup interface providesstatus functionality.

ClientProcessLocator:

ClientProcessLocator is a simple control that is safe for scripting andhas only one method, GetLocalPath. It is used by JavaScript in the webpage that displays the media files to determine the path of the localfile, if it has been downloaded.

Furthermore if the user has stopped the client process and thennavigates to a media page, the OBJECT tag containing theClientProcessLocator class id will cause clientprocess.exe to executeagain. If the user uninstalled the product, this tag will force areinstall or an update if the CODEBASE parameter is specified.

ClientProcessAsset:

ClientProcessAsset represents any object that is to be cached locally(group or media file). This COM Object is returned by the get_assetmethod in ClientProcessSvc or get_queuedAsset inClientProcessDownloader.

ClientProcessDownloader:

A singleton ClientProcessDownloader is created when the applicationstarts. It handles the download queue of assets. Assets add themselvesto the queue with the QueueDownload method and when an asset comes tothe top of the download queue, it is handed off to theCAsyncCacheDownloader instance for processing.

ClientProcessReference

ClientProcessReference objects represent media files. Each group canhave one or more references. This COM object is returned by theget_reference method in ClientProcessGroup.

Other C++ Classes

This section defines exemplary C++ classes in the client processapplication and summarizes their behavior and interactions with eachother. Some of the classes have COM wrapper objects for communicationwith other applications. FIG. 4 provides a table of the various classes.

CAsyncCacheDownloader—asynccachedownloader.h/.cpp:

This class encapsulates the downloading of assets to the local devicevia HTTP. CAsyncCacheDownloader subclasses CWindowlmpl to allow it toreceive messages since most of its operations occur on a separatethread. The client process uses window messages for inter-threadcommunication.

Most of its methods run on the main thread, but StartDownload( ) createsa new thread which, in turn, calls the DoDownload( ) method. DoDownload() uses Winlnet APIs to download a single asset and create an InternetExplorer cache entry for it.

The DoDownload method will download the file in small chunks at a time.It will also sleep after each chunk if the configured throughput isbelow 100%. For example, if throughput is 50%, the download thread willsleep for the same amount of time it tookto download the chunk toachieve an average of 50% throughput.

CCacheAsset—cacheasset.h/.cpp:

A CCacheAsset instance represents a single file that needs to be cachedon the local system. This could either be a group file or a media file(reference). Both CCacheGroup and CCacheReference instances instantiatea CCacheAsset instance to handle the downloading and caching of thefile. The GetInterface method returns the ClientProcessAsset interfacepointer of Its respective COM wrapper object.

If a download is unsuccessful, CCacheAsset will set a timer to try againaccording to the table of FIG. 5. If the download is successful,CCacheAsset watches the file system to make sure the cache item is notdeleted from the cache. If it is, the item is downloaded again.

CCacheGroup—cachegroup.h/.cpp:

This class encapsulates the XML group file. Each Group XML file ispassed to an instance of CCacheGroup that parses it and createsCCacheReference instances for each media file item. The GetInterfacemethod returns the ClientProcessGroup interface pointer of itsrespective COM wrapper object. A CCacheAsset instance is created torepresent this group file and a timer is set with the interval set tothe refreshRate specified in the XML. When the timer goes off, theCCacheAsset for the group file is added to the download queue.

CCacheReference—cachereference.h/.cp:

As the XML group file is parsed by CCacheGroup, a CCacheReferenceinstance is created for each media file item. CCacheReference creates aCCacheAsset instance to handle the download/cache functionality. Thisclass is also responsible for checking item expiration times andremoving items from disk that have expired.

CCacheTime—cachetime.h/.cpp:

CCacheTime subclasses the ATL CTime class to provide time conversionfunctionality. All date/time member variables in the client process arestored using CCacheTime.

CClientProcessModule—clientprocess.cpp:

This class represents the executable process itself.CClientProcessModule subclasses the standard ATL CAtlExeModuleT class.The reason for this is to add functionality to the startup of theprocess as well as the register and unregister. At startup, a sharedmutex is created using the ClientProcessSvc GUID as the name (to ensureuniqueness). If the mutex already exists, that means the application isalready running, so the current instance exits. All the extra installand uninstall functionality is done in this class as well.

CException—exception.h/.cpp:

Instances of CException are created and thrown when errors occur.CException handles the formatting of an error.

CRegistryVirtualDeviceX—registryvirtualdevicex.h:

Subclass of CRegistryVirtualDevice in ATL. This class overloadsAddStandardReplacements to stop ATL from checking the extension of themodule to determine whether we should put InProcServer32 orLocalServer32 in the registry. The client process is always an .exe and,therefore, a LocalServer, so the call may be unnecessary and addedexternal requirements on the application.

CTimer and CTimeable—timer.h/.cpp:

CTimer encapsulates timer functionality. Any object that wishes to use atimer need only to inherit from CTimeable, implement OnTimer, create aninstance of CTimer and call its Start method. Stop( ) stops the timer.

CUrlMap—urimap.h/.cpp:

CUrlMap is a specialized CAtlMap template class that allows one tocreate hash map classes that map objects to URLs.

More specifically, the system is further enhanced by: (i) addingdownload rate (throttling) support to download code, (ii) deletingassets when they expire, (iii) implementing ClientProcessLocator controland removing cookie logic, (iv) using a system tray icon and menu, (v)providing uninstall (removing executable, removing startup shortcut,cleaning registry), (vi) providing HitCountURL support, (vii) providingprogram information (an about dialog).

Care has been taken to ensure: (i) all proper ActiveX safety settingsare applied to each control, (ii) COM methods and properties are hidden(this way they will not show up in control design user interfaces likeVisual Basic), (iii) static function is used to poll the file system soonly one timer is used, (iv) logic to BottomLine is added to detectClientProcess and provide the System Tray icon submenu, (v) startup menushortcut is used instead of windows run registry entry, (vi) regularly,check the cookie that indicates whether ClientProcess is installed andre-create it if necessary.

C(iii). BottomLine Enhancements

BottomLine (Trademark of ESPN) may need to be modified to detect theclient process and, if present, display the client process menu items inits System Tray menu. This precludes having multiple icons in the trayif the user has both applications installed and running.

The client process will define its menu item ids within the rangeCLIENTPROCESS_MENU_START and CLIENTPROCESS_MENU_END. These constantswill be defined in a header file that is accessible to BottomLine whenit is built.

BottomLine and the client process need to be aware of whether eachprocess is running so they will need to perform the following steps: (a)when BottomLine starts up, it tries to create the client process Mutexto see if the client process is running, (b) when the client processstarts up or closes, it broadcasts a registered windows message thatBottomLine sees and BottomLine will respond with an acknowledgement, (c)when BottorLine starts up or closes, it broadcasts a registered windowsmessage that the client process sees and the client process will respondwith an acknowledgement.

Registered windows messages may allow applications to define their ownunique messages for communication with other windows that also registerthe same message. When the client process or BottomLine announces itspresence to the other application or acknowledges, it will pass alongits window handle for future communication. Then the client process willuse WM_COPYDATA to send to BottomLine the information to be displayed inthe menu. When a client process menu item is select, BottomLine willforward it.

Some of the features also included with the system that implements theclient process are: (i) ease of installation and updating (automatic),(ii) little or no client side user interface, (ii) server sideconfiguration of the client program, (iii) control over rate at whichfiles are downloaded, (iv) ability to track how many media flies aredownloaded, (v) ability to determine status of a media file download viaJavaScript, (vi) ability to ship a version of the control that iscontent provider specific (e.g., ESPN specific) in its naming.

C(iv). System Features

Client Process Program:

The client process program is responsible for downloading media contenthours before it is to be displayed on the web page. When the usernavigates to a page containing the HTML to display that file, the localcopy of the file can be used, which will significantly improve playbackquality.

Installation:

The client program may be allowed to install automatically. Any web pagecould contain a tag referring to the client process and the browser willautomatically install it or update it, if necessary.

User Interface:

The user interface for the client program can be integrated into asystem tray icon with a menu providing the ability to turn off oruninstall the product. If the BottomLine application is present, itsexisting system tray menu may be used instead.

Execution:

The client process may be installed in the startup folder on the user'sdevice so it will always be running. The program may regularly downloadan XML file from a WDIG server that will contain information about whichassets to download, when they expire and at what rate to download them.There will also be an interface for content provider web sites tocommunicate with the client process to determine the location of localmedia files.

Hosting:

The installation .cab file may be hosted by one or more heed-endsprovided by the Vertical using this product. Since it is a static file,it can be hosted by any web server. As new versions of the clientprocess are released, this file will be updated on the server.

Content Provider Bottom Line Modifications:

Suitable modifications may be done to the BottomLine application toprovide the system tray interface for the client process.

Sample HTML and Script:

Sample HTML and JavaScript may be provided to developers to demonstratehow to host and communicate with the client process.

External Interface Requirements

This section describes the external systems for which interfaces willneed to be created or modified.

ESPN BottomLine:

Some minor changes may be made to BottomLine to detect the presence ofthe client process and add menu items to stop and uninstall the client.

Client Process Detection:

Each time the BottomLine menu is displayed, BottomLine must detect thepresence of the client process and, if present and running, display asubmenu containing the client process menu items. Detection of theclient process is easily done by checking for the existence of a Mutexthat the client process creates upon startup or by looking for a windowthat has the client process window class.

Client Process Communication:

If the client process is running, BottomLine may use windows messages toquery which menu items to display. When a client process menu item isselected, BottomLine will use messages to tell the client process as towhich item was selected.

Media Content Server:

The server that hosts the media files may be any HTTP 1.1 web serverwhich should support HTTP byte range downloading (206 success code) inorder to enable download throttling. If the server does not support byteranges, the entire file could be downloaded at once, regardless ofconfiguration settings.

Configuration Server Interface:

There could be a server that hosts the XML configuration file. The XMLmay adhere to a format that is published in the design specifications.

Functional Requirements

1. Setting a cookie on the user's device indicating the program isinstalled. This cookie could be periodically checked to make sure theuser did not remove it.

2. Support software updates via Internet Explorer's Component Downloadfacility will ensure client code is properly updated if a new version isplaced on the head end and the HTML page is modified to request a morerecent version. Also, it may be ensured that no rebooting is requiredupon refresh.

3. Program may be installed in the startup folder and, therefore, willalways be running unless the user specifically stops it

4. Only and instance of the program will be running at once

5. Uninstall will be provided through a system tray icon menu. Uninstallmay be from initiated outside the program.

6. Menu items provided by a system tray icon.

7. Help—displays help for Disney Cache

8. The configuration file can have an optional helpURL item. When theuser selects Help, a browser will be opened with this URL.

9. About—shows program copyright/information dialog.

10. Exit—stops the program (does not remove it from startup folder).

11. Uninstall—uninstalls the program and removes registry entries

12. The configuration file: (i) may be in XML Format, (ii) may providerefresh rate for determining how often to download the conflagrationfile, (iii) may provide per-item settings for the URL, expiration date,URL for hit tracking and the download rate. Furthermore, the priority ofan item may determined by the order in the configuration file. Also, twodifferent configuration files may not contain the same item with thesame URL. In addition, information about the location of the XMLconfiguration file could be located in the registry underHKEY_CURRENT_USER.

File Download

Browser (e.g., Internet Explorer) Cache:

The client process could use the Internet Explorer cache to provideclient side caching of the media files. Files stored in the cache couldbe cleaned up by Internet Explorer, if necessary, to make room for otheritems. The XML configuration file, however, may be marked as sticky soit will remain on the hard drive for a certain period of time (e.g., 30days). Since the Internet Explorer cache is on a per Windows loginbasis, each user is allowed to have a separate cache.

The client process will need to check periodically (or use a File Systemwatch) to detect when an item has been removed from the cache. If it hasnot yet expired, it will be downloaded again.

Item Lifespan:

Each item will have an expiration date and time. Periodically, theclient process will check these times and delete any item from the cachethat has expired. The client process needs to be sure to track assetsthat exist on the device so that if they are removed from the XMLconfiguration file before the client had a chance to expire them, theywill still get deleted from the user's hard drive (this could happen ifthe user has had their device off for an extended period of lime).

Once an item is downloaded, it will not be downloaded again unlessInternet Explorer has removed it from the cache.

Configuration Refresh:

The client process will periodically refresh the XML configuration fileby downloading it from the server at the rate specified by therefreshRate XML element.

Download Errors:

If an error occurs when an item is being downloaded, after a timeout,the client process will try again. The amount of time to wait isdependent upon the type of error according to the chart provided in FIG.6.

Furthermore, the client process may perform downloads if networkconnectivity is available. If required, it may not perform a dialup todo downloads.

Throttling:

Each item in the configuration file can optionally be configured to havea specific download throughput percentage. This implies that the clientprocess may download the file in pieces and pause between each piece toachieve this. The web server that hosts the file should be capable ofsupporting the HTTP byte range feature.

Web Interface

URL for configuration file may be passed to the client process via anActiveX control property. ActiveX control will be safe for scripting andsafe for initialization. The client process could check the server partof the XML configuration URL to verify it is from the go.com domain.This is to prevent malicious web pages from initializing the clientprocess with potentially harmful data (large files downloaded often withsmall refresh rates). The OBJECT tag need not have a CODEBASE parameterso that the client process is not accidentally installed for someone whohas not opted in. The JavaScript may have code to check whether theobject exists before making any API calls and also check the installedcookie. At least one version of the client process can be installed onthe client device.

D. General

The description of exemplary and anticipated embodiments of theinvention has been presented for the purposes of illustration anddescription. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit theinvention to the precise forms disclosed.

Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the teachingsherein. For example:

(a) It may be possible to create a new component that provides genericSystem Tray icon support where installed client apps can registerthemselves to add menu items.

(b) The server-side user settings to determine the behavior of theclient process. The client process would need a unique identifier thatis tied to the user who installed it. Then the server could be moresophisticated and send different XML configuration files for differentusers.

(c) Continuation of downloads that do not complete.

(d) Adding more sophisticated download throttling (for example, takingthe baseline client bandwidth measurement and using that for calculatingthroughput control).

(e) Server-side smarts for determining server load based upon MRTG dataand use that to decide to return 503 response to the client process toprevent heavy load on asset download.

It is evident that those skilled in the art may now make numerous usesand modifications of and departures from the specific embodimentsdescribed herein without departing from the inventive concepts.Consequently, the Invention is to be construed as embracing each andevery novel feature and novel combination of features present in orpossessed by the apparatus and methods herein disclosed and limitedsolely by the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

1-47. (canceled) 48: A user device comprising: a cache; and a processorconfigured to execute a client asset manager process to: receive a mediaasset list over a network; send a request over the network for a contentselected by a user from the media asset list, the request specifying afuture time on or after which the user desires to view the content;receive, in response to the request, the content over the network by thefuture time; store the received contend in the cache; receive, inresponse to the request, an advertisement associated with the contentover the network; store the received advertisement in the cache; andprevent the user from viewing the content until the advertisementassociated with the content is stored in the cache. 49: The user deviceof claim 48, wherein the processor is further configured to: execute ascript to determine whether the advertisement associated with thecontent exists in the cache; and permit the user to view the content, inresponse to determining that the advertisement associated with thecontent exists in the cache. 50: The user device of claim 48, whereinthe processor is further configured to: check a token to determinewhether the advertisement associated with the content exists in thecache; and permit viewing of the content by the user, when the token isset indicating that the advertisement associated with the content existsin the cache. 51: The user device of claim 48, wherein the processor isfurther configured to play the content after the content in its entiretyis stored in the cache. 52: The user device of claim 48, wherein theprocessor is further configured to play the content and theadvertisement from the cache. 53: The user device of claim 48, whereinthe processor is further configured to prevent the user from viewing thecontent prior to the future date. 54: A method for use by a user deviceincluding a cache and a processor, the method comprising: receiving,using the processor, a media asset list over a network; sending, usingthe processor, a request over the network for a content selected by auser from the media asset list, the request specifying a future time onor after which the user desires to view the content; receiving, usingthe processor and in response to the request, the content over thenetwork by the future time; storing, using the processor, the receivedcontend in the cache; receiving, using the processor and in response tothe request, an advertisement associated with the content over thenetwork; storing, using the processor, the received advertisement in thecache; and preventing, using the processor, the user from viewing thecontent until the advertisement associated with the content is stored inthe cache. 55: The method claim 54 further comprising: executing, usingthe processor, a script to determine whether the advertisementassociated with the content exists in the cache; and permitting, usingthe processor, the user to view of the content, in response todetermining that the advertisement associated with the content exists inthe cache. 56: The method claim 54 further comprising: checking, usingthe processor, a token to determine whether the advertisement associatedwith the content exists in the cache; and permitting, using theprocessor, the user to view of the content, when the token is setindicating that the advertisement associated with the content exists inthe cache. 57: The method claim 54 further comprising: playing thecontent after the content in its entirety is stored in the cache. 58:The method claim 54 further comprising: playing the content and theadvertisement from the cache. 59: The method claim 54 furthercomprising: preventing the user from viewing the content prior to thefuture date.